Not a Fairy Tail
by LittlexMissxPsycho
Summary: Mathew just wants to be normal, but he can't if he's locked away as a science experiment. When he finally escapes his hellish prison, he encounters an unlikely person from his past, someone he thought was dead. What will happen now? Will Mathew find a happy ending, or will his past forever haunt him? Rated T for language.
1. Prologue

_**A/N: Getting annoyed yet? I know, i know, another story that no one cares about while i still need to work on othe**__**r stories no one cares about, but this one just hit me in the middle of he night and i just had to do something with it! I promise i'll get back to my other stories soon! *bows* thank you for working with me here...**_

_**And now, without further ado, i give you depressing story!**_

_**Disclaimer: how much do i own Hetalia? I don't! although i did get England and America key chains...**_

Prologue: Break Free

**Once upon a time..**

His breathes were shallow and ragged, his lungs desperately working to get the air his body needed as the small boy ran.

**In a land far away...**

Shouts echoed off the blank, sterile walls as his pursuers yelled at him. They were hot on his tail as he ran for freedom. He couldn't stop now, he was almost out, and if he didn't get out, they would hurt him more.

**Was a little boy...**

His labored breathing resonated though through the empty, uninviting halls, reverberating off of the blank white walls around him.

Blood pounded in his ears, heart beating fast from both fear and exertion. As he got closer to the exit, it was also from excitement. He would soon be out of this building and would find somewhere safe to live away from the pain of this facility.

**But, this isn't a fairy tail...**

He cried out, flying to the ground as a sharp pain ran through his leg. He tried to ignore the pain and get up to keep running, but his leg wouldn't support him, sending him to the ground a second time.

Fear raced through his body as the men came close to him, and he frantically tried to crawl away. If he could get to the exit he could call for help from anyone that passed by.

**Happy endings aren't a guarantee in real life...**

But they were faster than him now, holding him to the ground as the small boy thrashed and kicked at them, begging to be let go.

**And for some...**

"Please stop!" The boy cried out, struggling against the many pair of arms holding him down. A glint of silver flashed in the light from the window in the door, mocking him and his attempt at freedom. A man in a white coat, the only one not holding the boy down, held up the needle, a cruel smile gracing his lips as he tried to comfort the boy, but the child knew better.

"Hush now, it'll only hurt for a moment..."

**A happy ending isn't possible...**

Sobs ran through his body as he struggled to get away from the needle. "Stop, please! I don't want this!"

**But, for some others...**

Tear streamed freely down his cheeks, his thrashing becoming weaker as he tired himself out. He couldn't get away now, he was too weak to fight any longer.

**Happy endings are within reach...**

His thrashing and fighting slowed to a stop as his body gave up, being to weak and tired to move, but tears still fell down his face as the needle neared his arm. 'Stop.. please.."

"Its alright boy, it'll be over for the night soon.." A small cry escaped his lips as the needle pierced his skin. The plunger was pushed down, then everything was on fire. The medicine injected into his veins felt like lava flowing through his body. He screamed, struggling beginning anew as he tried to put of the fire in his body.

He screamed for what seemed like hours and the burning concoction flowed through his veins.

**And all they have to do is grab it...**

He screamed until his throat was raw, his shouts becoming hoarse and painful. The screams faded into silent cries as it became to painful to keep up the noise.

He was lifted up, and carried back to his prison of a room and placed on the hard uncomfortable bed none to carefully. The cool blankets felt good on his burning body. The door shut as the men filed out, locking the door firmly behind them.

When the fire began to dull in his body, he weakly turned onto his side, curling up in a ball with his knees hugged to his chest. A hand went a lightly touch the back of his neck, making him both sad and angry at the marks etched into the skin there.

"I'm not a lab rat... I'm a human..." sobs shook is body as he spoke to himself. "Why are they doing this to me..."

After about an hour, he was calmed down again, the fire in his body burned out and the tears dry and gone for the time being. With a sigh, he pulled off the hair tie he was wearing, letting his golden hair fall around him, forming curtains around his face and covering the numbers on the back of his neck.

He would try again.. he wasn't going to simply take this for the rest of his life, however short or long it may be. He would get out, and he would try as many times as he needed to before he got his freedom. I'f he didn't get out, he could never be himself again.

he could never be 'Mathew' again. he would always be a science experiment, number 1867, as his neck so kindly displayed for tall the scientists. If he stayed here, he would only be a experiment, an attempt to create super soldiers for the army.

But he wasn't going to stay. One day, he would get out and leave this place behind him forever. He would be Mathew Williams again. He just didn't know when.

**Just grab onto that happy ending which is so commonly found in worlds of make-believe..**

**If only their hands weren't chained down...**

Mathew vowed that get out, even if it killed him. He refused to give in to them.

**So its up to them..**

**To break the chains.**

_**A/N: So, what do you think? I come up with the oddest stuff sometimes...**_

_**Please Review!**_


	2. Escape

_**A/N: Hello my minions and welcome back to the story! Matt is a bit OOC in this chapter, but that will be explained later, i promise!**_

_**Disclaimer: *checks ownership of Hetalia* Nope, still not mine...**_

Chapter One: Escape

**Ten Years Later**

_Soon.. As soon as we get to my room.. _Mathew walked silently down the hall and the his guards lead him by his arms. He always had to have two armed men with him, supposedly to make sure he didn't try to run away again. He grins mentally, because he was going to prove how pointless it was for them to be there. He would be leaving this dreaded facility today. And soon.

At this point, having gone though years of torture and experimentation, he didn't care if he was dragged out in a body bag or if he walked out unscathed, he just wasn't going to be here after today.

A smile spread across his lips as he thought of the outcome for today. If he lived or died, he would be happy, and if he _did_ die, then he would drag as many of the wretched people down with him as he could.

Before long, Mathew was dragged out of his thoughts by being yanked to a stop by one of his guards as the other stepped forward to open the door to his room.

_Its now or never.. _With one last deep breath, his plan was set in action.

With a yawn, the blond raised his arms above his head, spreading them slightly to make it seem like he was stretching. The guard payed him no mind. That is, until Mathew's hand was brought down onto his head, sending him to the ground.

Before he could get up, Mathew swiftly kicked his chin, knocking him unconscious. Mathew sighs, rubbing his hand. "I knew he had a hard head but that was harder than i thought.." A soft clock sounded behind him ad he turns to see the other guard point his pistol at him. A grin spread across his face and he jumps to the side just in time to dodge the bullet.

In an instant, the blonde rushed forward, kicking the gun out of the guards hand, and punching him in the nose, smiling when a crack is heard. The mans scream echoed down the halls but was silenced by another punch, which knocked him out cold.

Wiping blood off his hand, Mathew took off running down the hall. "So far, so good.." Mathew smiles, but it quickly fades as a stinging pain shoots through his body from his shoulder. Raising a hand to grip his shoulder, he can feel blood dripping from a bullet wound. More gunshots sounded behind him and he began running faster, jumping from side to side to avoid getting hit as much as possible. Even so, he got hit several times.

A cry escapes his mouth and a bullet lodges itself just above his hip, making every step painful. Gritting his teeth, Mathew internally cheers as he turns the corner, only to curse at the sight.

A dozen guards stood in a line, guns aimed at him. Still trying to catch his breath Mathew stopped, turning to look as footsteps closed in behind him. He was surrounded on all sides: guards in front and behind, and walls on either side.

"Time to put that training to use.." He takes one more deep breath and rushes toward the guards, dodging shots as guns were fired. Ignoring the pain coursing through his body as he moved, he kicked the gun from the hand of one of his tormentors, catching it easily as it fell. In one swift move, he turned it back on the guard, sending a bullet straight through his heart.

Grabbing his wrist as the corpse fell, he pulled him up to shield himself from the bullets he didn't have time to dodge. Aiming around the side of the body, he shot the three bullets left in the gun, causing just as many more bodies to drop to the ground.

Throwing the body to the ground he ran to the other fallen men and grabbed the guns, spending their ammunition in the same manner. More and more bodies littered the ground, along with gun shells and blood.

Throughout the fight, Mathew himself took damage as well, bullets finding home in his arms and shoulder, and some grazing his legs and sides. At last, the last of the men were lying dead in pools of their own blood as Mathew stood in the middle of the carnage.

He was covered in wounds and blood, both his and the blood of various other men, but he was still alive, and none of the guards were there to stop him anymore. Taking a moment to breath, he reloaded a couple guns and walked off in the direction of the door.

Finally, he reached the door. He was reaching for the handle when a piece of metal was placed at the back of his head, making him freeze. Turning slightly, he could see his scientist holding a gun to his head.

He narrows his eyes, turning more, but stops when the gun is pressed more firmly to his skull. "Don't move or I'll blow that pretty little face of yours all over the wall."

The blond grins, turning around completely, ignoring the gun currently aimed at him. "So you think I'm pretty, huh?" Mathew could practically feel fire in that glare. "Come on, put the gun down. You and I both now you could never kill me..."

The scientist lowers the gun slightly, closing his eyes in thought. When his eyes opens again, he raises the gun again, leaving Mathew Staring down the barrel of the pistol as the hammer draws back.

_**Bam!**_

The body fell to the floor, landing with a thud as the still smoking gun was lowered.

Mathew grins, and turns opening the door. In the moment it had taken the scientist to find the resolve to kill his most valuable lab rat, Mathew had raised his own gun and aimed at the scientist's heart. All that was left was to pull the trigger.

"I told you, you could never kill me.." With one final look at the man who had cause him so much pain, Mathew turned back to the door, stepping out into freedom. Covered in blood and wounds, pain rushing through his body with every movement, he walked away from the terrible building. "I'm finally free.."

With a small smile, he continued walking away, leaving behind the life he once knew in search for a new one.

_**A/N: wow you know, i wrote this while watching Ghost hunt (why i did i have no idea) but as i wrote the end of this chapter, the ending credits started playing on the episode, and it was surprising how well it worked with the mode...**_

_**Please review!**_


	3. Rain

_**A/N: sorry about the delay, i recently had my wisdom teeth pulled and dealing with the pain in my mouth and wanting to sleep 23 hours of the day isn't good for writing :/**_

_**Still, i managed to pull together this chapter! Enjoy, and if it sucks i blame the pain meds...**_

_**Disclaimer: Great news! I still don't own Hetalia!**_

Chapter Two: Rain

Soon after leaving the testing facility, it looked that Mathew's good fortune had run its course and left, leaving Mother Nature to send tears of joy to the blond haired eighteen-year-old in the form of a rolling thunderstorm that shrouded the streets in wet darkness. The rain washed away most of the blood on Mathew's skin, running red, then pink, and finally fading to clear off the boys body as the rain poured over him.

While he was grateful not to have blood on his face anymore, the rain also soaked his clothes, washing away any blood that hadn't already stained the fabric, but also leaving the blond chilled to the bone in the cold and rainy weather. Eager to get out of the rain, he began to run, being careful not to fall on the slippery concrete. By the time he found a ledge to hide under, his clothes were heavy with rain and he was freezing cold.

Tired from the long run, the leaned against the wall, using it as support as he slid down to the mostly dry ground. Curling into a ball to try to warm up, he began to consider his options for the night.

He could go out and try to find someone that would be kind enough to give him shelter for the night, and tomorrow he would be out on his own, maybe head to find his brother in town, if he was still there anyway. The problem with this option, however, was the not-so-stunning lack of people out in the rain. It could take hours to find anyone in this weather, and possible longer to find one willing to take him in for the night.

The second option was to stay where he was, out of the rain, and try to stay warm and dry (as dry as he could anyway). But there was a problem here too. If he stayed out in the open like that, anything could happen. He could get sick from the cold, get raped by anyone that happened to pass by him, he could be found by a thief and have the few things he had with him stolen.. he could even be killed, or worse, found by one of the assistants that were gone when he made his escape.

Both options had risks, but they also held rewards if they actually worked. If he ventured out to find someone, he could find a home for the night. Somewhere warm and dry, and food, real food. Not crappy hospital food, but real food, like his guards would bring in for their lunch. The thought of that alone was almost enough to bring him to his feet and send him looking around from people, but not quite.

If he stayed where he was, he could dry off and get warm, not risking hours in the rain for something that would be unlikely for him to find. Then, in the morning, he could wake up and keep moving again.

While Mathew was caught trying to figure out the best option to go with, he didn't hear the two sets of footsteps walking in his direction, nor did he notice that they stopped next to him. He was oblivious to them until a hand was placed on his shoulder, drawing him out of his thoughts.

In a swift motion brought out by surprise, Mathew was on his feet, pinning the men to the wall, despite the throbbing pain the quick movements caused.

"Ah! Please, wait a moment! We didn't mean to frighten you!" The blond man cried, a french accent coming through in his voice.. At a glance, he would have thought the man was girl because of his long, soft blond hair and shinning blue eyes, but the stubble on the mans chin quickly crushed that impression, telling the true story that the girlish features hid.

"Si! Si! Please forgive us for scaring you!" The other man was a completely different story. He was the kind of man most women could only dream of being with. Sun-tanned skin, soft and short, slightly surly brown hair, gorgeous green eyes, and a lean but toned body that showed even in the loose shirt the man wore. He also had an accent, a Spanish one that matched his looks perfectly.

Muttering an apology for scaring the men, he released them gripping his arm to try to sooth the pain of the bullets digging into his muscles. the movements had also caused the wounds to begin bleeding again, though it was washed away by the rain, as Mathew had stepped out from under the ledge. After a moment, the pain had gone down enough for him to ignore again.

"Ah, how rude of me! I'm Francis and this is Antonio." At hearing the blond speak again, Mathew looked back at the two who were standing with smiles under umbrellas . "Again, we apologize for scaring you but we saw you sitting here and wondered why you would be sitting out here in this weather. Since no one would be here if they had anywhere to go, we came over to invite you to come home with us."

Surprised, Mathew just stared at the two men, waiting for them the laugh and tell him it was a joke, but it never came, so he had to ask, "Really?"

"Si! What decent human being could sit back knowing someone was suffering right under their nose?"

Hearing those words brought tears to Mathew's eyes. What decent human being indeed... His whole life up until now was spent under one of the 'human beings' that did nothing while others suffered under them, not giving two shits about the well being of him or anyone other than himself.

Now, Mathew was standing with two men that offered him, a possibly dangerous person that could overpower them both without breaking a sweat, a place to stay out of the rain because they didn't want him to suffer. He was a complete stranger to them, yet they were being so kind to him.

The tears didn't go unnoticed, even with the rain dripping down his face.

"Ah! No need to cry, mon cher!" Francis said with a smile as he covered the boy with the umbrella to keep him from being rained on any more.

"Sorry.. Its just that you are the kindest people I've ever met.. Thank you for inviting me to stay at your home."

"Now now, no need to be so formal!" Antonio spoke this time, as he draped his jacket over the small blond's shoulders. "Come on, lets get home and so you can dry off and warm up before you catch a cold."

After waiting for the small nod that Mathew gave, they began walking home, Mathew holding the jacket tightly around him to keep warm, while Francis held the umbrella over the two of them.

The whole walk home, Mathew was quiet, silently wondering if his luck had really run out when it began raining. When they finally reached the large two story building that would now be his home, he decided that no, his luck hadn't run out yet. In fact, he decided that it was his good fortune that made it begin raining in the first place, as though it predicted that these men would walk by the spot that Mathew would sit to rest.

If not for the rain, he probably would not have been found by Francis and Antonio. He would still be wandering around aimlessly outside.

They led him inside, and stopped by the door to take off their shoes. After leaving their muddy footwear by the door, they continued into the house expecting Mathew to follow. When he didn't, they turned to him. "Something wrong?"

Mathew kept his gaze low. "I don't want to make the carpet dirty." Finally, Francis and Antonio looked down to see that Mathew didn't have any shoes, and his feet were covered in mud and grime. With a soft smile, the Spanish man stepped forward and picked up the small blond.

"I'll take you to the bathroom so you can clean up. Francis, make some tea for him, will you?" Not even waiting for the confirmation, Toni was already heading down the hall. Once inside the bathroom, he set the small blond on the closed toilet and turned to the bath, starting the water. "There you go! I'll leave you to clean up then, if you need anything just call!"

With a nod, Mathew watched him go, before remembering something that would actually be pretty useful. "Actually, do you have a first aid kit I could use?"

"Oh, sure! Its in that cabinet."

"Alright, thank you Antonio."

"No problem.. uh, my apologies, but you never told us your name."

It true, though they did talk a bit on the walk home, Mathew never mentioned his name to the two men. But they were doing so much for him, Mathew figured he could at least give them his name. So with a small, and unknowingly adorable, smile he turned to the Spanish man. "Mathew Williams.. Thank you for your help Antonio."

"Si.. no problem.." Toni wasn't blind, so when he saw that smile, he would have been lying if he said he wasn't affected. After seeing the adorable grin on the small blonds face, he couldn't help but be a little dazed at the cuteness. Pushing that aside, he gave one last goodbye and left Mathew alone in the bathroom.

Stripping off his stained and dirty clothes, he sighed at the sheer amount of gun wounds he had sustained earlier that day. Carefully, he slipped into the water and clean away the dry blood and mud on his body. Before he finished, he had to drain and refill the tub to finished scrubbing his body.

Once he was finally done cleaning himself, he retrieved the first aid kit and set about cleaning and bandaging his wounds.

Or rather the few that came from bullets grazing his skin. The others he had more 'fun' dealing with. Biting a towel to keep from screaming or biting his own lip off, he pressed his fingers into the holes to pull out the bullets. It seemed luck was still with him because none of the bullets had left shards of metal in his body, they all came out whole.

By the time he had finished, he was once again covered with blood and had to wash himself again before disinfecting and bandaging all of the wounds. But, after what had to be hours, he was finally finished. Seeing the pile of metal in the sink, he was surprised to see how many bullets he had had in his body. And the bandages he had on his body almost made him look like a mummy.

The only part on his body that wasn't wrapped in white was his head, though even his face had a few small tan band-aids covering some cuts from bullets barely missing hitting him in the head.

Still, he was clean, bandaged, and warm. But as he ran a comb through his hair, he realized another problem. He didn't have any clothes to wear. With a groan he began looking around for something to cover up with while he asked for clothes to borrow, after all, explaining the large amount of bandages on him would be difficult.

Finding a silk robe that more than likely belonged to Francis, he pulled it on and tied the sash around his waist to keep it from falling open and went to the living room to ask one of the men for something to wear.

After getting dressed and sitting down for a light dinner with the Spaniard and the Frenchman, he was led to a bedroom, his new bedroom, and was left alone for the night.

He was finding it hard to sleep, though. Like a kid on Christmas eve, he was to giddy about what would happen the next day. He was already told that he would be taken out to go shopping for clothes, and possibly find his brother.

This excitement kept him up until late that night, long enough for him to see when the rain stopped outside. Even the clouds drifted apart before he was asleep. But it let him see a rarity, something that highlighted his new life.

It was full moon, and with the freshly fallen rain, the white light reflected off the suspended water in the air, causing a lunar rainbow to stretch across the night sky.

With another smile, something he was doing so much more now that he was free, he finally layed down and fell asleep peacefully, not having to fear what tortures he would have been put through the next day, but instead wondering all the fun he would have instead.

From now on, he could forget the tattoo on the back of his neck, forget the first 18 years of his life, and live like a normal person.

It was almost like a fairy tail.. The main character goes though so much pain, never living life for themselves, then fate comes in to right the wrong and takes them from that horror to give them a good life.

_I think I found my happy ending..._ This was his last thought as he drifted off into a happy dream with a smile on his face.

Tomorrow, he would begin his happy life, never worrying about his past again.

Then again, this is no fairy tail and problems would arise, but Mathew would find that out on his own...

_**A/N: so, tell me what you think~ you would not believe how hard it is to write while your mouth feels like it being torn apart.. Any tips for dealing with the aftermath of getting wisdom teeth pulled?**_

_**Please review, fav/follow.. and leave some of those tips if you can! really, my mouth hurts so bad...**_


	4. Unexpected

_**A/N: Hello my minions and welcome back to another chapter of Not a Fairy Tail!**_

_**My mouth feels better, so time to write! but I started school so time to write when I can :D**_

_**In this chapter: Mathew's been with Francis and Antonio for a while now and he's finally settling in, but then an unexpected guest shows up, revealing more about Mathew than he ever wanted the two kind men that had taken him in to know...**_

Chapter Three: Unexpected

_"Birdie!"_

_The small blond child, only about 6 at this point in time, let out a sigh and turned to his best friend. He was sitting in the training room, having just finished a session, and the sunlight was shining bright and happy in the room from the high windows._

_"Why do you always call me that, Gil?"_

_The albino known as Gilbert smiled as he answered. "Because one day we're getting out of here! We'll be free as birds! So i have to get a head start are calling you my little birdie." Calling him 'his little birdie' made Mathew blush slightly, turning away in slight embarrassment._

_"Not all birds are free."_

_"And not all birds talk back." Mathew gave the albino a tired glare. "Come on Birdie, just trust me, we'll get out of here one day!"_

_"Not so loud! If they here us talking about escaping they'll separate us.."_

_"I'd like to see them try! I'm too awesome for them to keep away from you!" that always brought a smile to Mathew's face._

_After a moment of simply talking and Gilbert helping the blond to stretch a bit, Mathew was called back to begin training again. With a sigh e got up to head back on the mats to the large group of padded men that would serve as his target for this round._

_Before he took three steps, though, he stopped, and looked back at Gilbert._

_"How do you know?.." Nothing more had to be said, for they both knew what Mathew was referring to._

_Red eye gleamed with pride as the albino answered. "Because we're too awesome to be locked in here forever.." That made Mathew pause for a moment. Gilbert had included him in it, calling him 'awesome'._

_So he had to smile back at Gil, nodding slightly. "Alright i trust you!"_

_The albino smiled back, nodding._

_xXxXx_

_Mathew was a bit older now, it being a month after his seventh birthday, and he was cuddling the only thing that he had of his family's, a pure with stuffed polar bear. He had it since he was born, and it was his security 'blanket' when Gilbert wasn't around, and sometimes when he was. "Gil, are you sure we can do this?"_

_"Of course we can.. with two elite soldiers how can we fail?"_

_"What if we get separated?"_

_"If we end up separated somehow, promise you keep moving.. Promise you'll get out of here, with or without me by your side."_

_"But Gil-"_

_"Promise me Birdie.."_

_A moment of silence passed between them, Gilbert stone faced as he waiting for Mathew to speak, and Mathew fighting an inner battle on whether he would really want to leave Gilbert behind like that, willing or not.. Finally, he looked up from the ground, looking into the warm red eyes of the person he would do anything for._

_"I promise."_

_xXxXx_

_Mathew was running, only a few feet ahead of Gilbert as they ran from the set of guards they had just managed to knock unconscious The blond boy gripped his bear tightly, not willing to part with it even during their fight for freedom._

_With much practiced agility, Mathew dodged out of the way of one of the guards breath catching for a moment as a piece of his hair was sliced by the knife held in the man's hand. Adjusting the grip on his bear, Mathew flipped back, planting one hand firmly on the ground as his legs sung up, hitting the man twice, once between the legs and the other under his chin._

_With a quick flip of his wrist, Mathew propelled himself into the air, bringing his leg down once more to land a hard hit to the back of the guard's head. With a smile he pulled the knife from the fallen man's grip and threw it to Gilbert, who accepted the blade happily._

_They were almost out, almost to their freedom.. None of the other guards were close enough to catch them, they just had to keep running. But they had a moment, so they stayed by the unconscious man to catch their breath._

_When they began to hear distant yells, they decided it was time to head out, and began to run, but Mathew was stopped by something pulling on his bear. Figuring the leg had just caught on something he reached down to unstick the fuzzy appendage but froze for a moment at seeing what was caught._

_The leg of the bear was being help in a death grasp by the man Mathew had fought moments before. The beaten and bloody-faced man was grinning up at the young blond. Scared, Mathew began stomping on the mans arm, back, and even his face, but he wouldn't give up the bear._

_Gilbert let out a growl from a little down the hall. "Leave the bear Matt! We need to go!"_

_"I can't leave it! Its the only family I have!" Tears pricked his eyes at the though of leaving behind his bear. "I just can't leave him!"_

_With a groan and one look down the hallway of freedom, he ran back to Mathew. "__Keep moving, I'll get the bear." Grabbing the stuffed animal from the blond he raised the knife as Mathew began moving down the hall._

_Mathew was already a good distance away when he heard the man scream as Gilbert cut off his hand with the pocket knife, somehow avoiding getting blood on the bear. With a smile he started down the hall back to Mathew._

_That's when a gunshot fired, and Gilbert stopped dead in his tracks, eyes wide as blood began to blossom on the front of his shirt. Seeing this Mathew yelled his name as the albino dropped to the ground._

_"Gilbert! No, get up please!"_

_Meanwhile the man that had already caused them so many problems began laughing maniacally "That's what you get for cutting off my hand you little brat!"_

_Tears feel quickly down Mathew face as the albino layed on the ground, blood pooling around him. Running of sadness and pain and anger, Mathew took the knife from Gilbert's cold, pale, unmoving hand and stepped towards the laughing man on the ground and with one quick move, planted the knife into the man head, effectively silencing him._

_Moving back to Gilbert he kneeled next to the albino, shaking him gently. "Gilbert please get up.. you can't leave me! Not when we're so close!"_

_But the albino, even more pale than normal against the red blood, stayed unmoving, eyes closed peacefully._

_"Gilbert! If you're so awesome then talk to me! Please, you have to get up!" Tears clouded his vision and he buried his face into his friend's stomach, soaking the blood stained shirt with tears._

_"Keep moving.. remember your promise.."_

_Mathew froze for a moment, lifting his head to see Gilbert smiling weakly at him._

_"Remember? 'get out, with or without me by your side'... You promised remember?" The albino managed to say before closing his eyes again, smile fading._

_"Gil?.." No answer. "Gilbert?.." Silence. Tear began to fall again but he stood anyway, wiping the saltwater away from his eyes. "I.. I'll keep my promise, no matter what!" The blond look down at his friend, who still held his bear in his hand. With a deep breath, he lifted the bear form Gilbert's loose grip an turned to leave, but stopped.. Gilbert only got shot because he was getting the bear.. he could leave him the bear at least, right?_

_With more emotional strength than he even thought he had, the placed his bear on Gilbert's chest, folding the albino's arms over it in the same way Mathew would have held the bear himself._

_"I promise, I'll get out Gilbert, for the both of us.."_

_And on that day, he did get out, walking out of the front door covered with blood, but guards had gone ahead of him, taking a shortcut to wait for him outside the door. He was dragged back kicking and screaming, even with a dozen gun aimed right at him he screamed at them, and even being so young, he cursed at them._

_Yelling screaming, kicking, and fighting them as much as he could wasn't enough, and they dragged him right back past the spot where Gilbert had been. They had already moved his body.._

_And reality had sunk in at that moment. Gilbert was gone. Kumajiro was gone. And Mathew didn't get out. It was all for nothing. All of it. he fell silent for a few moments and he was dragged past the puddle of blood, but after a while, he broke._

_The same feeling he had felt when he ended the life of the man that shot Gilbert over took him. A strange calm that blocked out part of the world._

_His feet planted firmly on the ground, and try as they may, no amount of guards could get him to budge. Mathew stared at the blood on the floor, then slowly turned to the guards. They took one look at him and raised their guns._

_They were found an hour later by one of the scientists. Mathew was curled up in a ball on the floor, crying with his face hidden behind his knees. He was covered in blood and gore, all of the guards around him beaten, bloody, and most of all, gruesomely dead._

_xXxXx_

_Mathew was told to forget about Gilbert Any time he asked what they did with him, he was beaten and they ceased giving him pain killers for his tests. They said it was because he was getting old enough to not need them, but he knew they were just being spiteful of losing one of their favorite lab rats._

_For a month after the failed escape Mathew refused to eat, witch took its toll on his body, as well as the tests, so the scientists began testing ways to keep soldiers fed without actual food. He began to eat again the next day._

_After two months, he began trying to escape at least once a week. Security was tightened, and more highly trained guards were brought in to watch Mathew 24/7. Every time he failed his escape he would stay in his room the entire next day, apologizing to no one that he had failed, and that he had yet to keep his promise._

_Years passed, and he gave up.. at least for a while, to let them relax and lower security a bit. It worked and at 18 years old, Mathew made his great escape and kept his promise._

**Three Months After The Escape**

Mathew yawned quietly as he came down the stairs only to stare in disbelief at the sight in front of him. "I just cleaned this last night..."

The living room floor was covered in a wine bottles and beer cans. Chips bags were scattered around the floor as well, along with about 3 bags worth of crumbs... With a sigh Mathew grabbed a trash bag and started cleaning up the mess, sweeping up the chips and wiping spilled alcohol off the table. He was finished in just a few minutes.

"There! hmm..." The blond only just noticed the two men sleeping on the couch. Antonio was on his stomach with his arms draped over the arm of the couch, his head turned slightly to the side so he could breathe. Francis, on the other hand was on his back, his head falling over the other couch arm, and his own arm and leg falling off the front of the couch. It was an interesting sight, for the men usually made it to their rooms after a night of drinking.

He just shrugged and righted the men so they would hurt just a little less after sleeping on the couch all night, and covered them with a blanket. After that he went to the kitchen and began to make breakfast.

Francis had spent the better half of every day for a month teaching Mathew how to cook, and the blond was more than happy to take up the art, cooking most of the meals they had since he was able to cook without Francis in the kitchen.

With a smile on his face, humming softly to himself, he started some bacon on the stove while he mixed batter for pancakes.

"Aww, Francis, making breakfast already, awesome!"

Mathew froze. It couldn't be.. it was older, but he knew that voice. His grip tightened on the glass mixing bowl so he wouldn't drop it as he turned to look. Sure enough silver hair shined in the sunlight from the kitchen window as the albino looked throguht the fridge for orange juice.

Despite his tightened grip, upon confirming that this was in fact the man he once knew, the bowl slipped through his fingers, shattering in the hardwood floor and sending glass and pancake mix all over the floor.

"Ahh! Damnit, my new shoes!" Gilbert turned to the blond ready to yell at him because he was expecting it to be Francis staring back at him, but froze when it was a set of violet eye staring disbelievingly back at him.

They stood just looking at each other for what seemed like hours, but it was no more than a minute because Antonio and Francis came rushing in at that moment. "Gilbert, what is the problem, amigo?" Both Gilbert and Mathew were silent, only sparing the two men a glance.

Finally, Mathew made the first move...

... and ran right past him and up the stairs to his room.

Gilbert followed quickly, shouting his name. "Mathew wait!"

Francis and Antonio just watched silently, trying to figure out what happened.

Meanwhile, Mathew was falling apart in his room. The door was locked and he could see the door shaking as Gilbert pounded on it, telling him to let him in. But he just sat against the far wall with his knees pulled up to his chest.

"There's no way.. he died.. there's no way.. he died.." he just kept chanting to himself, over and over, as if it could make him disappear. He had gone through so much pain, thinking that the albino was dead and gone, never to be seen again, and now here he was again, complaining about his shoes of all things.

He loved the man, he always had, but this was too much. Mathew had only recently made it out of the hell hole he had been all but chained to a wall in and Gilbert was out doing who knows what and never even tried to tell Mathew he was alive.

As more time passed, Gilbert became more frantic at the door, shout at Mathew constantly to come out or open the door. Finally, that shouts and banging stopped, and soft voices were heard outside.

Then all was quiet as footsteps faded away down the hall. Mathew lifted his head away from his knees after he was sure they were gone, and only then did he realize he was crying. He didn't know why he was crying or when he began crying, but tears were falling.

With a sigh he stood and went to the bathroom connected to him room and washed his face, then his arms to try to keep busy and calm down, eventually giving up and taking a shower.

Slowly, just trying to keep the shower going longer, he ran his hand through his hair, and his hand lightly drew across the raised symbols on the back of his neck again, which was an unfriendly reminder of why he wanted a distraction in the first place so he quickly shut off the now cold water and dried off, dressing in a hurry. He was running a comb through his hair when a light knock came at his door.

"Mathew, please come out, we need to talk." Francis'' voice came from the other side of the door, soft and gentle, as if he didn't want to scare the boy. After a few moments, he decided it would be okay and opened the door for him. All three men were standing at the door, but Mathew refused to look at the albino, looking down when he walked by to enter the room, but he could feel those red eyes watching him.

He left the door open and went back to his vanity to finished combing his hair. A few minutes passes before Antonio finally broke the ice. "Gilbert told us what happened to you.." Mathew paused only for a moment as he pulled the comb through his nearly dry hair, but the grip on his comb tightened visibly.

"Mathew, we had no idea you went through something like that.. why didn't you tell us?" Francis had a slightly hurt tone to his words.

"It wouldn't have mattered, I'm already out of there..."

Finally Gilbert spoke up. "Are you Matt?.." He had to look at the albino now. "You may be out physically, but you're still bothered by the things that they did, am I right?" Mathew just glared at him and began combing his hair again, grip tightening as he continued to speak. "The things they did to us.. to you, they'll always be there in your mind, huh..." some teeth fell off the comb. "You'll can't get away from it because all those drugs, and medicines they used have changed you physically, so you can never forget about it."

_Snap._

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU KNOW! You've obviously been out for years.. you've had plenty of time to forget much less than I have.." Gilbert just looked at him. With a feral snarl that scared Francis and Antonio to their very cores, he rushed towards Gilbert, aiming to punch him in the face.

But he albino dodged out of the way, keeping a straight face as he grabbed the blond's arm, twisting it around his back and pinning him to the wall. "Now now, what was it instructor Johnson said? Don't let emotions control your actions." Mathew only paused for a moment before using this position s gain the leverage he needed to grab Gilbert's arm on fling him over his shoulder, landing the albino on the floor roughly.

But Gilbert used this position to grab Mathew's leg and drag him down to the floor with him. An annoyed growl left Mathew's lips and he decided to use some of those skills he gain unwillingly. If he was going to have them, he may as well use them.

Using his inhumanly increased strength, he bent back onto his hands and dragged the albino into the air with his leg since he was still holding on, and flung the man out the door of his room.

The albino wasn't expecting this move so he was unprepared and got the wind knocked out of him as he connected with the wall. Looking up after he got his breath back, he saw Francis and Antonio trying to hold Mathew back from possibly harming the albino.

Still, Mathew overpowered them easily and made his way to Gilbert, landing a solid punch to the albino's face. On anyone else, it could have easily broken hi jaw, but Gilbert was toughened up by the same drugs as Mathew, so he would be fine.

After waiting for the short daze to pass, Gilbert looked up at Mathew who had tear rolls down his face, but his still burned with rage.

"I spent years In that place trying to get out.. Just to keep my promise to someone i thought i watched die.. The things they did can never be undone.. For years you were running free..Why didn't you come help me.."

Gilbert's eye widened slightly as the small blond boy fell to his knees, burying his face in his hands.

"I thought i was alone for so many years, thinking you were dead.. After you left if i even mentioned your name i went through so much.. as if watching you 'die' wasn't painful enough.." he was sobbing now, all the while Gilbert just watched, to shocked to speak.

Finally, just like they had done when they were kids in that horrid place, Gilbert pulling Mathew close and began lightly petting his hair to calm him. "Its okay Birdie, everything will be okay.."

And they spent the night like that: Gilbert hold Mathew as he cried, with Francis and Antonio watching silently as tears of their own slid down their faces.

_**A/N: Holy s**t! that was a lot longer than i intended o-o okay then! Honestly, i cried a bit myself when i wrote the flashback bit... Poor Matt D:**_

_**Please review!**_


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